December 10/Second Sunday of Advent Since everything is to be dissolved in this way, what sort of persons ought you to be in leading lives of holiness and godliness? ~ 2 Peter 3.11 Memento Mori (Latin for “Remember you must die”) is the title of a 1959 novel by the redoubtable 20th-century Scottish author Muriel Spark, who is a longtime…
Keeping Advent 7: Bringing in the Harvest
December 9/First Saturday of Advent When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few, so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.” ~ Matt 9.36-38 However you…
Keeping Advent 6: Seek and Hide
December 8/First Friday of AdventSolemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary The Lord God called out to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” He replied, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.” ~ Gen 3.9-10 Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of…
Keeping Advent 5: Demolition by Neglect
December 7/First Thursday of Advent The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house. And it fell – and great was its fall! ~ Matt 7.27 Failure to build on a strong foundation is inevitably a pathway to collapse, whether one is constructing a house or a faith life. The obvious and salutary…
Keeping Advent 4: Being There
December 6/First Wednesday of Advent Moving on from there Jesus walked by the sea of Galilee, and going up onto the mountain he sat down there. Great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the maimed, the blind, the mute, and many others. They put them at his feet, and he cured them. ~ Matt 15.29 The Jesus…
Keeping Advent 3: Wise Guys
December 5/First Tuesday of Advent “I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.” ~ Luke 10.21 No matter how many times I read this passage from Luke, it always makes me feel a bit defensive. What’s wrong with…
Keeping Advent 2: Higher Up
December 4/First Monday of Advent In days to come, the mountain of the LORD’s house shall be established as the highest mountain and raised above the hills. ~ Isaiah 2.1 In the past year or so it has felt as if the world is unraveling. Global violence and terror, political division and social acrimony, storms and fires and floods, the…
Keeping Advent 1: Hiking Into Time
December 3/First Sunday of Advent Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. ~ Mark 13.33 A few Novembers ago, on my first trip to the Grand Canyon, my husband and I walked the South Rim, following the trail along the canyon’s top. When we reached the Bright Angel trailhead, he opted to stay on…
Keeping Advent 2024: Daily Reflections for the Advent Season
I will be offering Advent reflections again this year. These brief meditations, based on the lectionary, are accompanied by a prayer, a musical offering, and a link to the day’s readings. The reflections will begin on the first Sunday of Advent, December 1, and will conclude on Christmas Eve. If you or someone you know wishes to receive a daily…
Easter Day: A Hymn of Praise
Sunday, April 9Easter Sunday Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,for his mercy endures forever. ~ Ps 118.1 On this glorious Easter morning – glorious whatever the weather, which in my case is predicted to be a bit on the dreary side – as we rejoice in and celebrate the wondrous resurrection of Christ, I have some gratitude…